1. Definitions
The definitions below apply in these terms and conditions:
- “Child” the child or children who is named in the registration form;
- “You” the person, firm or company who purchases Services from us;
- “Services” the services of a Weekend School at session specified in Part A together with any other
services which we provide, or agree to provide, to you; - - “Us” the School named in the registration form
- A reference to writing or written includes faxes and / or email and other forms of digital communication
- Any requirement in this contract for either party not to do something includes an obligation on that party not to allow that thing to be done.
2. Formation of the contract
2.1 A contract for the Services will be formed between you and us once you have given us a signed, fully completed, registration form and paid the term’s fee specified in the quote issued and we have confirmed to you in writing that your application for a place has been successful.
2.2 These terms and conditions govern the contract between you and us for the Services. No other terms apply unless they are in:
2.2.1. A handbook issued to you by us,
2.2.2. A policy issued to you by us on our knowledge base
2.2.3. A letter that is signed by both you and us.
2.3 In the case of any uncertainty as to which terms apply, these terms and conditions will apply.
3. Duration of the contract
3.1 The contract shall last until it is terminated by either you or us giving to the other, in writing, at least one term’s notice. However, the contract can, in some circumstances be terminated immediately under clause 16.
3.2 You are liable for the fee during the notice period. If you fail to give proper notice, you may lose your deposit
4. Suspension of the Services
The Services may be suspended (meaning the Child is temporarily not able to attend the Weekend School) in the circumstances set out in our Critical Incident Policy or in the circumstances set out in clause 17. If the Services are suspended for a period of more than one month, either of us may terminate the contract by giving the other one month’s written notice.
5. Our obligations
5.1 We will use all reasonable efforts to provide the Services to you, in accordance in all material respects with these terms and conditions and any other documents referred to in 2.2 above and in line with our obligations as a registered provider of Childcare on both the Early Years Register (0-5) and Childcare Registers, both Mandatory part - ages 5-8, and Voluntary (ages 8-14) and with our own policies and procedures, which can be viewed on our website
5.2 We welcome staff and children from many different backgrounds and ethnic groups. Human rights and freedoms are respected and we will do all that is reasonable to ensure that our culture, policies and procedures are made accessible to children who have disabilities and to comply with their social and moral obligations under the Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001 or Equality Act 2010 in order to accommodate the needs of children, applicants and members of staff who have disabilities for which, after reasonable adjustments, we can cater adequately
5.3 If we determine, in our sole discretion (after appropriate and reasonable analysis) that reasonable adjustments cannot be made for a Child and as such we cannot continue to adequately provide for that Child (or admit them as the case may be) then we shall be permitted to request that you withdraw the Child without being charged fees in lieu of notice.
5.4 A MINIMUM of 3 students are required / class for the school to open a class. Should the number fall below 3, parents or students will be informed in advance before the term starts and any fees / deposits may be returned. Private tuition can be arranged in that case.
6. Your obligations
6.1. You shall:
6.1.1.Co-operate with us;
6.1.2 Provide to us such information as we may reasonably require about:
the Child (e.g. Any known medical condition, health problem, allergy, or diagnosed dietary requirement; Any prescribed medication; Any lack of any vaccination which the Child would ordinarily have by their age; Any family circumstances or court orders affecting the Child;
Any concerns about the Child’s safety; and
Your contact details, and those of your authorised persons who may collect the Child.
6.2. You must (a) ensure that these details are accurate and (b) keep these details up-to-date, by promptly informing us in writing whenever they change.
6.2.1. As regards arrivals and departure of a child, please refer to the Arrivals and Departures Policy. Please ask for a copy of it if necessary.
6.3 If our performance of our obligations under the contract is prevented or delayed by anything you do (or fail to do), we shall not be liable.
6.4. You shall not employ (or attempt to employ) any member of our staff without our consent, until six months from the end of this contract.
7. Charges and payment
7.1 You shall pay the charges as set out in the quote and issued to You via invoices on a monthly or on a rolling termly basis
7.2 Charges are due even if the Child is absent irrespective of the reason for the absence
7.3 VAT is not charged on School fees (School provision is an exempt supply for VAT purposes).
7.4 The quoted charges are per Child, per term (meaning the sessional times outlined in Part A, delivered from the key dates outlined in Part A). Fees include all activities and snacks but do not include exceptional items, such as YCT exam fees, outings and trips, to which we will correspond with You on a case by case basis about any potential additional fees or surcharges applicable
7.5 The charges must be paid termly in advance, by the 1st day of the month immediately preceding the month in which term starts and are non-refundable
7.6 All payments must normally be made by direct debit or childcare vouchers, termly in advance. We
may agree to payment by cash, cheque or major credit/debit card, but it is your responsibility to obtain a receipt from the School Manager as proof of payment. No payment shall be deemed to have been made until it is cleared into our bank account. If a cheque bounces, or payment fails, we may charge a reasonable administration fee (currently £ 15 / transaction).
7.7 We may increase our charges once per year. We will give you written notice of any such increase one term before the proposed date of increase.
7.8 Without restricting any other legal right that we may have, if you fail to pay us on time, we may:
7.8.1 Make an interest charge of up to 3% per cent per month or part month on late payment. Unless otherwise notified to you in writing, interest shall accrue on a daily basis from the due date until the date of actual payment of the overdue amount, whether before or after judgment. You must pay us the interest together with the overdue amount. In addition we will be entitled to recover from you the full amount of our administrative and other costs incurred in recovering any unpaid sum including legal costs and disbursements on an indemnity basis, for which we will or may retain your deposit
7.8.2 Charge you a reasonable administration fee (currently £ 15 / transaction ) and
7.8.3 Suspend all Services until payment has been made in full, which will include the suspension of the Child, or even terminate the contract permanently
7.8.4 If you owe us any money, and make a claim against us, we may set off what you owe us against what you are claiming from us.
8. Welfare of the Child
8.1 We will do all that is reasonable to safeguard and promote the Child’s welfare and to provide care to at least the standard required by law and often to a much higher standard.
8.2 We will respect the Child’s human rights and freedoms which must however, be balanced with the lawful needs and rules of our School and rights and freedoms of others.
8.3 Your consent to such physical contact as may be lawful accord with good practice, and be appropriate and proper for teaching and instruction and for providing comfort to a Child in distress, or to maintain safety and good order, or in connection with the Child’s health and welfare.
8.4 For Health & Safety under 3ys playgroup parents are required to stay with your children at all times.
8.5 As regards behaviour management techniques and sanctions, please refer to the School’s
Promoting Positive Behaviour Policy. Please ask for a copy of it if necessary - it is on our knowledge base
8.6 The School uses emergency procedures for accidents, evacuations, incidents and allergic
reactions, please refer to the individual policies and procedures and ask for a copy where required.
9. Health and medical matters
9.1 If the Child becomes ill during the school session the school manager will contact you or the
emergency contact indicated on the registration form. You must inform us immediately of any
changes to these contact details. If your child requires urgent medical attention while under our care, we will if practicable attempt to contact you and obtain your prior consent. However, should we be unable to contact you we shall be authorised to make the decision on your behalf should consent be required for urgent treatment recommended by a doctor (including anaesthetic or operation, or blood transfusion) unless you have previously notified us you object to blood transfusions)).
9.2 If the Child is suffering from a communicable illness, he/she should not be brought to the school
until such time as the infection has cleared. A full copy of our infection control policy is available from the school manager and we defer to the Department of Health and the Department of Education’s guidelines on School Exclusions for clarity. Please refer to the illness/communicable disease list supplied in your information on minimum periods of exclusion from the school.
9.3 You must notify the school manager if the Child is absent from the school through sickness.
9.4 If the Child has been sent home from school because of ill health, he/she will not be re-admitted
for at least 24 hours. If the Child is prescribed antibiotics, he/she will not be allowed to return to the school for 48 hours.
9.5 As regards medication, and the administration of it to a Child, please refer to the school’s
Medication Policy. Please ask for a copy of it if necessary.
9.6 Please also see clause 6.1.2 on matters we need to be informed about.
10. Food/dietary requirements
10.1 We will work with you to provide suitable snacks for your Child, if they have a special dietary
requirement or any allergies as diagnosed by a doctor or dietician. All reasonable care will be taken to ensure that a Child does not come into contact with certain foods with support from parents and external professionals should the need arise.
10.2 No packed lunches supplied by parents will be heated up by us.
11. Reporting of neglect or abuse
We have an obligation to report to the relevant authorities any suspicions we have that your Child has suffered neglect or abuse, and where necessary we may do so without your consent and/or without
informing you.
12. Limitation of liability
12.1 This clause sets out our (and our employees’, agents’, consultants’ and subcontractors’) liability
to you in respect of the contract (including any breach of it, any statement we make to you about it, our termination of it).
12.2 All terms implied by law are, to the fullest extent permitted by law, excluded or deleted from the contract.
12.3 Nothing in these terms and conditions in any way limits our liability for fraud, or for death or
personal injury resulting from negligence.
12.4We shall not be liable for:
12.4.1 Any loss or damage to any toys, equipment or bags, clothing etc. you may bring into our
school;
12.4.2 Loss of any profits, or consequential loss; or any other indirect loss; and
12.4.3 Subject always to clause 12.3, our total liability (in contract, tort including negligence or breach of statutory duty, or otherwise) shall be limited to cumulative price paid by you for the Services over the course of the contract.
13. Data protection
13.1. You agree that details of your name, address and payment record may be submitted to a credit
reference agency, and personal data will be processed by and on behalf of us in connection with the Services.
13.2. We may take photographs and/or videos of your Child for promotional or training purposes only. If you do not wish for your Child to be included in such photographs or videos, please inform us by completing the ‘permission form’ given to you on enrolment, or by writing to the nursery manager.
13.3. Any personal data related to You or your Child will be dealt with in accordance with our privacy notice, which can be found at www.hatching-dragons. com.
14. Security
Parents are welcome to visit the nursery, but we will not admit anyone without prior notification. It is your responsibility to ensure that we are aware of who will be collecting your Child. No Child will be
allowed to leave the building with any person who has not been notified as an authorised person to
collect the Child on your behalf.
15. Complaints and concerns
Please address any complaint or concern to the supervisor in charge, in the first instance, and if the
matter is not resolved within a reasonable period, please refer it to the nursery manager. Please also
refer to our complaints and compliments policy which shall apply to any complaints received by us.
16. Termination for breach of contract, or bankruptcy / insolvency
16.1 Without restricting any other legal rights which the parties may have, either party may terminate
the contract without liability to the other immediately on giving written notice to the other if:
16.1.1 The other party fails to pay any amount due under the contract on the due date for payment
and remains in default for 10 days or more; or
16.1.2. The other party commits a material breach of any of the terms of the contract and (if such a
breach is capable of being remedied) fails to remedy that breach within 30 days of that party being
notified in writing of the breach; or
16.1.3. The other party suspends, or threatens to suspend, payment of its debts or is unable to pay its
debts as they fall due or admits inability to pay its debts or is deemed either unable to pay its debts or
as having no reasonable prospect of so doing, in either case, within the meaning of section 268 of the
Insolvency Act 1986.
16.2. On termination of the contract for any reason:
16.2.1. You shall immediately pay all of our outstanding unpaid invoices and interest and, in respect
of Services supplied but for which no invoice has been submitted, we may submit an invoice, which
shall be payable immediately on receipt; and
16.2.2. Any clause in these terms and conditions which implicitly is intended to survive termination
shall continue in force.
17. Events that are beyond our control
17.1 If any event beyond our reasonable control (e.g. a fire, flood, E-Coli outbreak, strike, civil action,
act of terrorism, war etc.) occurs, for which we have business interruption insurance, we may close
the nursery without liability to you and we will not charge you for the fees for the time the nursery is
closed. We will keep you informed, in such an event.
17.2. If it is, in our reasonable opinion, necessary or in the interests of the Child to do so, we may
close the nursery even though our business interruption insurance will not cover us for the closure. In
these circumstances, we will charge you for the time the nursery is closed. For example, we may
close because of severe weather conditions, outbreak of flu, swine flu or other illnesses etc.
18. Invalid clauses
If any part of the contract is found by any court or similar authority to be invalid, illegal or
unenforceable, that part shall be struck out, but the rest of the contract shall apply.
19. Changes to these terms and conditions
19.1.We may change these terms and conditions where such a change arises from changes in
regulations or legislation affecting us.
19.2 We may change any other terms in these terms and conditions provided we will give you at least
one month’s written notice of our intention to do so.
20. No other terms
Each party acknowledges that, in entering into the contract, it has not relied on anything said or
written that is not written in the contract. This applies unless fraud is established.
21. Assignment
The contract is personal to you. You shall not, without our written consent, transfer to anyone else any of your rights or obligations under the contract.
22. Rights of third parties
A person who is not a party to the contract shall not have any rights under or connection with it.
23. Governing law and jurisdiction
The contract, and any dispute or claim arising out of it or in connection with it or its subject matter or
formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims), shall be governed by the law of England.
The courts of England shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any such dispute or claim.